HOLLAND TOWNSHIP -- After hearing about problems others faced when they booked a spot for a wedding reception, only to have the place go belly up, Sharyl Mart thought she'd taken precautions to ensure that scenario wouldn't derail her youngest daughter's celebration in the spring.

But now the Zeeland woman is worried her family will lose the $1,000 deposit it put down to rent a banquet hall for the reception in the now-bankrupt Macatawa Legends Golf Club LLC.

Courtesy PhotoMatthew Decker, of Woodland, and Holly Mart, of Holland, were set marry in May at now-bankrupt Macatawa Legends Country Club.Daughter Holly Mart is set marry fiance, Matthew Decker, of Woodland, in May.

"We tried to circumvent anything like this from happening," said Sharyl Mart.

Mart said when dealing with Macatawa Legends Golf & Country Club, she requested her deposit be put in escrow, meaning the company couldn't have the money until it provided the service. It wasn't, she learned after the facility went into bankruptcy.

The timing couldn't be worse for Sharyl Mart, with her husband, Greg, the family's sole income-earner, currently unemployed.

"I knew this had happened to people. ... Nobody wants to lose money, but I was emphatic about it because of our situation. We did everything we knew to do at the time," she said.

The club's owner, Macatawa Legends Golf Club LLC, filed for Chapter 7 liquidation in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Grand Rapids on Dec. 2.

The investment group owes $8.3 million with assets of $1.7 million, according to the filing. Holland Township-based Macatawa Bank Corp. is listed as the primary creditor, holding a $5.3 million mortgage.

The attorney for the club's ownership group said he wasn't aware of the Marts' situation but had been contacted by other people with similar issues. He encouraged any potential creditors to notify the bankruptcy court and contact Macatawa Bank.

"There may be an escrow account," said Jeffrey Holst, who is representing the club. "We just have no information about it, because the bank had been running it."

A spokeswoman for the bank, which took over operation of the club earlier this year, referred calls to the bankruptcy trustee, Lisa Gocha.

Gocha could not be reached for comment.

Macatawa Legends' bankruptcy filing is part of a string of problems that have befallen some Holland-area banquet services.

The Mart family had a much different experience last year when the owner of Till Midnight in Holland closed the restaurant and banquet hall after a reservation had been placed for another daughter's wedding.

Fortunately, that owner worked out a deal with Baker Lofts, where Till Midnight was housed; and the reservations were honored.

"It went off seamlessly. They notified us ahead of time. They told us that there wouldn't be any disruption to our plans," Sharyl Mart said.

Mart isn't so sure she'll be so lucky with Macatawa Legends. So far, she hasn't heard anything from the management other than what she had read in the newspaper.

"I'm just seeing how this washes out," Mart said. "I'm hoping when this goes into bankruptcy court, they'll be gracious and realize we are the little guys."

In court, it's likely the Marts and other would-be clients who file claims to have their deposits returned will join a line of other creditors.

At this point, Mart wants her money back, and the family is looking for a new facility for the May wedding reception.

The Marts and other families are trying to connect with those who also are waiting for a refund of their deposits. They've set up an e-mail account: deposits4all@aol.com.

"Anyone who writes, we tell them what we have learned about how to file a claim for return of their deposit," said Bill Baker, who also had given Macatawa Legends a deposit for his daughter's wedding.